Method and apparatus for processing routing requests

ABSTRACT

The invention provides a method and apparatus for communication and provision of routing address information. The prior owner of a called telephone number is referred to herein as a “prior subscriber”. When a number is released by a prior subscriber, it is placed into a database referred to as the “spare pool” which includes available (unsubscribed) telephone numbers. When a caller dials a number that is in the spare pool, the invention intercepts the call and takes any number of possible actions. In one embodiment, the invention automatically forwards the caller to a new number based on a database that stores the new number of the prior subscriber or routes the caller to a message that gives the caller the option (either via a charge or after listening to an advertisement) of being connected to, or being given, the current number of the prior subscriber.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to the field of communication.

Portions of the disclosure of this patent document contain material thatis subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objectionto the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or thepatent disclosure as it appears in the Patent and Trademark Office fileor records, but otherwise reserves all rights whatsoever.

2. Background Art

Electronic communication, whether via land line, telephone, mail,internet, email, cell phone, etc, is accomplished by having a routingaddress of an intended receiver. In the world of telephony, this is thetelephone number or subscriber line of the entity being called. In thecontext of the internet, it is the URL of a website. For email, it isthe email address of the intended receiver. In today's fluid society,such routing addresses change constantly, often outpacing the ability ofdirectories to keep up. In addition, a user may not keep up their ownpersonal directory, leading to incorrect routing addresses for manyentities. These problems are described below with respect to telephony,but have equal application to electronic communication such as email,web browsing, faxes, telexes, GPS location requests, etc.

In current telephony systems, a call placed to an inactive number may behandled in a number of ways. For example, if the former owner of thenumber has requested forwarding of the old number to a new number, thecall may go through transparently to the caller, and reach the intendedparty. In other cases, the former owner of the number may have requesteda forwarding message that indicates that the old number has beenchanged, with the new number then being provided. In both of thesecases, the caller is able to connect with its intended party sooner orlater.

More frustratingly are two other possibilities. In one, there is noforwarding message and the caller simply hears “This number is no longerin service” message. In another, the old number has already beenassigned to a new customer, who knows nothing about the current numberof the former owner. This of course can frustrate the caller and requireadditional research to identify a correct number to call.

The caller may decide to request directory assistance to locate thedesired number. This may be difficult, if not impossible, when theformer owner has changed cities or states. In many cases, directoryassistance is limited to at least a region or city, and finding thenumber for an entity outside that region is not possible. The caller mayalso seek to use other resources, such as the Internet, publisheddirectories, etc. in an attempt to determine the appropriate phonenumber.

Sometimes the caller does not have the resources or time to spendlooking up the information, particularly when traveling or when outsidethe office or home (such as on a cell phone). In other cases, the calleris not necessarily interested in a particular business or entity, ratherin a service. For example, if the caller was seeking a florist who haschanged its number to an unknown number and can't be found by directoryassistance, the caller would like to get the name of another florist inthe same neighborhood. Under current schemes, this requires the callerto already know the name of the alternative florist, or to spend timelooking it up.

Another problem is the failure to get to a desired routing address dueto errors in entry or routing of the address, due to mis-entry,electronic interference, computer error, etc. Currently there are noadequate techniques for catching such mistaken attempts and providingcorrective and/or optional action.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides a method and apparatus for communication andprovision of routing address information. When a communication isattempted to an inactive or a recently changed routing address, thepresent invention intercepts the attempt and provides one or moreservice options to the requester. These options may include providing orconnecting the correct routing address to the requester, offeringrelevant services to the requester, subsequently contacting therequester and offering options, or directing the requester to otheraction or routing addresses that may provide desired solutions for therequester. In telephony, for example, the invention provides a methodand apparatus to improve the ability of a caller to be connected to, orto easily learn a forwarding number of, a prior owner of a calledtelephone number. The prior owner of a called telephone number isreferred to herein as a “prior subscriber”. When a number is released bya prior subscriber, it is placed into a database referred to as the“spare pool” which includes available (unsubscribed) telephone numbers.When a caller dials a number that is in the spare pool, the inventionintercepts the call and takes any number of possible actions. In oneembodiment, the invention automatically forwards the caller to a newnumber based on a database that stores the new number of the priorsubscriber or routes the caller to a message that gives the caller theoption (either via a charge or after listening to an advertisement) ofbeing connected to, or being given, the current number of the priorsubscriber. In another scheme, the location of the caller is identifiedand the caller is offered the chance to learn the number of, or beconnected to, a similar business in the geographic region. In anotherembodiment, the phone number of the caller is provided to a marketingservice that calls back the caller within some predetermined time tooffer a similar, competing, or even unrelated service as that of theprior subscriber.

In another embodiment of the invention, communication attempts aremonitored and intercepted for analysis. The system detects faults inthese attempts due to human error, computer error, and line/wirelessinterference. It then predicts and offers corrected connections, pathsand solutions to complete the intended, desired or compatibletransactions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a flow diagram illustrating the operation of one embodiment ofthe present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram illustrating another embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 3 is an example of an embodiment of a database in the presentinvention.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of one embodiment of number acquisition in thepresent invention.

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of service selection in one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram illustrating the service flow of one embodimentof the invention.

FIG. 7 is a diagram of a computer embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of an alternate embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for telephony.In the following description, numerous specific details are set forth toprovide a more thorough description of embodiments of the invention. Itis apparent, however, to one skilled in the art, that the invention maybe practiced without these specific details. In other instances, wellknown features have not been described in detail so as not to obscurethe invention.

The invention provides a method of collecting and storing spare routingaddresses. A novel database data structure provides the ability toprovide a variety of options and services associated with the routingaddresses. The invention also collects available information from aplaced connection attempt to help determine actions to implement basedon a variety of factors. A database of participating vendors is alsomaintained along with novel data structures so that one or more of aplurality of options may be implemented. An example of one embodiment ofthe invention is described below. In the description a routing addresscould be a phone number, URL, email address, or any other suitablerouting address that allows communication between a sender and areceiver. One making a connection attempt may be referred to herein as arequester, caller, mailer etc. without departing from the scope of theinvention.

FIG. 1 is a flow diagram illustrating the operation of one embodiment ofthe present invention. At step 101 an incoming connection attempt isdetected and the routing address is collected. In one embodiment of theinvention, all connection attempts made to routing addresses that arehandled by the invention are automatically routed to the system. Inother embodiments, all communication attempts are monitored and sentthrough the system for analysis. At step 102 the captured routingaddress is provided to a connection address database 103 so thatappropriate information can be determined. This information can includethe name of the prior subscriber, any forwarding routing address for theprior subscriber, the type of business associated with the priorsubscriber, the geographical region of the routing address, etc.

At step 104 the service options available for the routing address aredetermined, based in part on the information retrieved from database103. In one embodiment this is accomplished by reviewing a serviceoptions database 105 that stores information about options forparticular routing addresses or other indicia associated with therouting address (type of business, geography, etc.). The service optionsdatabase also includes information regarding third party participantswho may have agreed to participate in the system. Such third partyparticipants are described in more detail below.

At step 106 the appropriate action on the call is performed based on thecollected data. Such action may include automatically forwarding therequester to the prior subscriber, providing a message informing therequester that although the routing address is not working, therequester my be connected with a directory assistance service, may beconnected for a fee, may be connected in return for accepting anadvertisement, or may be offered to be connected to another localbusiness providing the same or similar service.

At step 107 the detail of the connection attempt information iscollected and stored in a database 109. The procedure ends at step 108.

Services

The present invention contemplates a number of services that can beprovided to a caller who attempts to connect to a spare pool routingaddress (i.e. a routing address that has been relinquished by a priorsubscriber). For example, a caller may receive a message indicating howthe caller can access the new routing address of the prior subscriber.This may be a for-fee directory assistance service, a web site, etc. Thecaller is provided an access code and is charged for accessing thedirectory assistance. A web user who attempts to link to an abandoned orunassigned URL may be offered a gateway multiple products and services.

Another type of service can be provided by having a number ofparticipating sponsors or vendors. For example, if the caller isattempting to contact a flower shop but that flower shop has changednumbers, moved or is out of business, the caller may be offered thechance to connect to another flower shop in the same or similargeographic region as either the prior subscriber, or in the region ofthe caller. The participating sponsor can then be charged each time acaller accepts the opportunity to be connected. Alternatively, thecaller is charged a fee in return for the connection.

Another possible service is related to the ability to identify a callerwho is available to receive calls because their presence in acommunication medium is known. In telemarketing, a large number ofattempted calls are not completed because the intended receivers are notat home at the time. In one embodiment, the present invention includesone or more participants who wish to be notified when a call attempt ismade that goes through the system of the invention. Such activityindicates that the caller is at home or near a phone and is more likelyto answer than when calling is random. In such a circumstance, therouting address of the caller is provided to a participant that matchessome indicia associated with the caller (e.g. geographic region, type ofbusiness of attempted connection, time of day, etc.). The participantthen calls the caller within some time frame with the expectation thatthe chances of answer are increased substantially.

This embodiment is described in connection with the invention used withtelephony in FIG. 2 below. It should be noted that similar servicescould be offered in other communication mediums as well.

Referring to FIG. 2, an incoming call is placed and the dialed number iscollected at step 201. At step 202 that number is fed to database 203for analysis. Database 203 includes internal and external data. Sourcesof external data include source, feeds and historical information 204,services and historical 205, and advertisements 206.

At step 207 it is determined, based on database analysis, how to respondto the caller and a service option such as described previously isprovided at step 208. At step 209 the call detail information is storedand information is added to the database and the call ends at step 215.

Optionally in this embodiment, the call information is taken through asecond process 210 to lookup 211. At this step the database is againanalyzed to determine if there is a participant or ad that may matchwhat the caller may be interested in, based on caller phone numberinformation or other indicators. An outbound dial caller is activated atstep 212 and the ad or information is provided to the customer at step213, with the second call ending at step 214. In one embodiment, thesecond process is held until receiving a signal that the original calltransaction has ended at step 215.

Databases

The invention maintains databases on spare pool routing addresses aswell as connection transactions and on the numbers of callers makingattempted connections. An example of an embodiment of a database ofphone numbers is illustrated in FIG. 3. A number of tables are storedwith data that is used in various embodiments of the invention andrelated to the various services that are provided.

Table 301 maintains transaction detail history including a history ID,the phone number dialed, the associated company (prior subscriber), theservice type provided for the transaction, along with alternate numberinformation and geographical information. The service type ID anddescription is found in Table 302 and is related to Tables 306, 312 and313. Table 306 stores advertiser information including advertiser ID,service type ID associated with the advertiser, along with contact andgeographical information. The advertiser may be the same or differentthan the prior subscriber, depending on the nature of the transaction.Table 312 is a database of copy or content associated with anadvertisement or advertiser and includes a copy ID, advertiser ID, validdate range information, default ads and transfer information. A copyruntime table 313 stores information about copy IDs and trigger timesassociated with the content.

Tables 304 and 305 store closed exchanges and temporary numbersrespectively. These tables are checked when a call comes in to determineif the system should handle the number or not. The closed exchangesstores area codes and prefixes that are not available for handling bythe system of the invention. Table 311 stores the temporal history ofspare pool numbers, storing all number related information along withidentification of the last responsible organization, previous status,and last dataset date.

Table 308 is a registry table that stores information about the activenumbers in the system, including all phone number related information(number, area code, prefix, line) along with status value information,statues date and time information, responsible organization ID anddataset date information. The history of each number is kept in ahistory table 303 that includes information about a number over time.Dataset History table 307 tracks the dataset temporal data including thecreation date for a dataset for a new number or a new dataset for anexisting number. Table 310 stores information about the responsibleorganization for a number (i.e. the Telco that is responsible for thenumber). Table 309 stores value descriptions for a number.

Acquiring Numbers

There are a number of number administration resources that track activeand spare pool numbers and permit automated and batch queries andupdates of spare pool numbers. The present invention takes advantage ofthese systems (e.g. SMS/800 Centralized Management System) to reserve,activate, reroute, deactivate, and release spare pool numbers to thesystem of the invention. Some of the systems provide call historyinformation and the present invention can be implemented to set certainparameters of call frequency, location, related business, etc. todetermine if automatic acquisition is in order. A flow diagramillustrating number acquisition in one embodiment of the invention isshown in FIG. 4.

At step 401 a spare pool number is acquired from a number administrationmanagement system. The history of the number is provided to an analysisprocess at step 402. The process compares associated metadata of thephone number to predetermined values at block 403 and a number qualityscore is determined. At decision block 404 it is determined if thenumber quality score exceeds an acquisition threshold. If yes, thenumber is acquired and added to the database at step 405. If no, thenumber is returned to the pool at step 406 and the system returns tostep 401.

Service Selection

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram of service selection in one embodiment of thepresent invention. At Step 501 the dialed number is captured and sent tothe database lookup at step 502. At decision block 503 it is determinedif the prior subscriber is a participant and has a service associatedwith the captured number. If yes, the system proceeds to step 504 and aservice of the prior subscriber is selected and the system proceeds toservice flow 509.

If the prior subscriber is not a participant, it is determined atdecision block 505 if any participant is associated with the particularnumber. If yes, the service of the participant is selected at step 506and the system proceeds to service flow 509. If there is no participantassociated with the specific number it is determined at decision blocks507 and 508 if there is a participant associated with geographiclocation and type of business respectively. If yes, the system proceedsto steps 506 and 509. If not, the system offers directory assistance atstep 510, with a possible initiation of a follow up marketing call asdescribed above in FIG. 2.

Service Flow

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram illustrating the service flow of one embodimentof the invention, and such as may be initiated in step 509 of FIG. 5. Atstep 601 the service flow begins. At decision block 602 it is determinedif there are multiple services available for this participant. If not, adefault service is provided at step 603 and the system proceeds to step606. If there are multiple services available, it is determined if theyare runtime restricted at decision block 604. If not, the defaultservice is provided at step 603. If the services are runtime restricted,then the appropriate runtime compliant service is provided at step 605.

At decision block 606 it is determined if the caller (when necessary)has accepted or elected the provided service. As noted previously, thisstep can result in a fee charge to the caller. If the caller elects theservice, the system proceeds to execute the service at step 607.

After the service has been executed, or if the caller did not elect aservice at step 606, it is determined if follow up marketing ispermitted at decision block 608. This may hinge on the participant,do-not-call restrictions, etc. If follow up marketing is not permittedthe transaction ends at step 610. If follow up marketing is permitted,it is initiated at step 609.

Predictive Routing

In one embodiment of the present invention, communication attempts aremonitored and intercepted for analysis. The system detects faults inthese attempts due to human error, computer error, and line/wirelessinterference. It then predicts and offers corrected connections, pathsand solutions to complete the intended, desired or compatibletransactions.

Communication intercept stations tap into and capture communicationattempts, such as via satellite, microwave, cellular and fiber-opticcommunications traffic, and then process and analyze this information.This monitoring and intercept may also be on a selective basis bysubscribers, network providers, equipment makers, or other electedparticipation. The analysis of the communication attempt may includevoice recognition and optical character recognition programs. The systemlooks for dialing patterns, data patterns, graphic patterns and keyed orspoken words and phrases that will prompt the system to flag the messagefor immediate special services. These special services may include (i)corrective routing by analyzing and predicting what the person/computeris trying to accomplish vs. what is being achieved or the systempredicts will be achieved (ii) recording and transcribing for futureanalysis. Intelligence systems at each of the respective interceptstations maintain keyword lists to analyze anything flagged by thesystem, which is then processed for lookup and matching againsthistorical and exact/fuzzy information to arrive at predictive solutionsand suggestions for the sender or special service system/operator.

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram illustrating an embodiment of the invention. Atstep 801 a communication attempt is monitored and detected. The routingaddress (phone number, URL, email address, fax number, telex number,etc.) is analyzed at step 802. The analysis may be tailored to eachindividual requester and may include comparison to previouscommunication attempts and matching of the routing address to previouslycontacted routing addresses. For example, if a transposition of elements(a wrong number, typo, mis-spelled address, etc.) has occurred, thesystem may be able to catch it and take a number of corrective steps.For example, at step 803 the system may simply reroute the attempt to apredicted “correct” routing address. This could function in much thesame way as automatic spell checkers in word processing programs work inthe sense that information that does not appear in the library iscorrected automatically to the closest likely word that is resident inthe dictionary. Similarly, the present invention could select a correctrouting address that has the highest similarity to the attempted routingaddress. There are a number of well know algorithms for accomplishingsuch matching and any may be used herein. In other embodiments, thesystem could include voice recognition software to analyze communicationattempts made via voice.

Alternatively, at step 804 the system could alert the requester to thepotential error in the routing address and provide an option for therequester to continue with the original request or to accept the offeredcorrected address, or even permit the requester to select from a list ofpossible correct addresses.

For inactive routing addresses, this embodiment could function much asdescribed above for providing options and services to the requester. Inaddition, follow up marketing calls could be initiated even when nomiscommunication is directed, based on any attempt at communication bythe requester.

Embodiment of Computer Execution Environment (Hardware)

An embodiment of the invention can be implemented as computer softwarein the form of computer readable program code executed in a generalpurpose computing environment such as environment 700 illustrated inFIG. 7, or in the form of bytecode class files executable within a Java™run time environment running in such an environment, or in the form ofbytecodes running on a processor (or devices enabled to processbytecodes) existing in a distributed environment (e.g., one or moreprocessors on a network). A keyboard 710 and mouse 711 are coupled to asystem bus 718. The keyboard and mouse are for introducing user input tothe computer system and communicating that user input to centralprocessing unit (CPU) 713. Other suitable input devices may be used inaddition to, or in place of, the mouse 711 and keyboard 710. I/O.(input/output) unit 719 coupled to bi-directional system bus 718represents such I/O elements as a printer, ANV (audio/video) I/O, etc.

Computer 701 may include a communication interface 720 coupled to bus718. Communication interface 720 provides a two-way data communicationcoupling via a network link 721 to a local network 722. For example, ifcommunication interface 720 is an integrated services digital network(ISDN) card or a modem, communication interface 720 provides a datacommunication connection to the corresponding type of telephone line,which comprises part of network link 721. If communication interface 720is a local area network (LAN) card, communication interface 720 providesa data communication connection via network link 721 to a compatibleLAN. Wireless links are also possible. In any such implementation,communication interface 720 sends and receives electrical,electromagnetic or optical signals which carry digital data streamsrepresenting various types of information.

Network link 721 typically provides data communication through one ormore networks to other data devices. For example, network link 721 mayprovide a connection through local network 722 to host 723 or to dataequipment operated by ISP 724. ISP 724 in turn provides datacommunication services through the world wide packet data communicationnetwork now commonly referred to as the “Internet” 725. Local network722 and Internet 725 may use electrical, electromagnetic or opticalsignals which carry digital data streams. The signals through thevarious networks and the signals on network link 721 and throughcommunication interface 720, which carry the digital data to and fromcomputer 700, are exemplary forms of carrier waves transporting theinformation.

Processor 713 may reside wholly on client computer 701 or wholly onserver 726 or processor 713 may have its computational power distributedbetween computer 701 and server 726. Server 726 symbolically isrepresented in FIG. 7 as one unit, but server 726 can also bedistributed between multiple “tiers”. In one embodiment, server 726comprises a middle and back tier where application logic executes in themiddle tier and persistent data is obtained in the back tier. In thecase where processor 713 resides wholly on server 726, the results ofthe computations performed by processor 713 are transmitted to computer701 via Internet 725, Internet Service Provider (ISP) 724, local network722 and communication interface 720. In this way, computer 701 is ableto display the results of the computation to a user in the form ofoutput.

Computer 701 includes a video memory 714, main memory 715 and massstorage 712, all coupled to bi-directional system bus 718 along withkeyboard 710, mouse 711 and processor 713. As with processor 713, invarious computing environments, main memory 715 and mass storage 712,can reside wholly on server 726 or computer 701, or they may bedistributed between the two. Examples of systems where processor 713,main memory 715, and mass storage 712 are distributed between computer701 and server 726 include the thin-client computing architecturedeveloped by Sun Microsystems, Inc., the palm pilot computing device andother personal digital assistants, Internet ready cellular phones andother Internet computing devices, and in platform independent computingenvironments, such as those that utilize the Java technologies alsodeveloped by Sun Microsystems, Inc.

The mass storage. 712 may include both fixed and removable media, suchas magnetic, optical or magnetic optical storage systems or any otheravailable mass storage technology. Bus 718 may contain, for example,thirty-two address lines for addressing video memory 714 or main memory715. The system bus 718 may also include, for example, a 32-bit data busfor transferring data between and among the components, such asprocessor 713, main memory 715, video memory 714 and mass storage 712.Alternatively, multiplex data/address lines may be used instead ofseparate data and address lines.

In one embodiment of the invention, the processor 713 is amicroprocessor manufactured by Motorola, such as the 670X0 processor ora microprocessor manufactured by Intel, such as the 70X76, or Pentiumprocessor, or a SPARC microprocessor from Sun Microsystems, Inc.However, any other suitable microprocessor or microcomputer may beutilized. Main memory 715 may be comprised of dynamic random accessmemory (DRAM). Video memory 714 may be a dual-ported video random accessmemory. One port of the video memory 714 may be coupled to videoamplifier 716. The video amplifier 716 may be used to drive adisplay/output device 717, such as a cathode ray tube (CRT) rastermonitor. Video amplifier 716 is well known in the art and may beimplemented by any suitable apparatus. This circuitry converts pixeldata stored in video memory 714 to a raster signal suitable for use bydisplay/output device 717. Display/output device 717 may be any type ofmonitor suitable for displaying graphic images.

Computer 701 can send messages and receive data, including program code,through the network(s), network link 721, and communication interface720. In the Internet example, remote server computer 726 might transmita requested code for an application program through Internet 725, ISP724, local network 722 and communication interface 720. The receivedcode may be executed by processor 713 as it is received, and/or storedin mass storage 712, or other non-volatile storage for later execution.In this manner, computer 700 may obtain application code in the form ofa carrier wave. Alternatively, remote server computer 726 may executeapplications using processor 713, and utilize mass storage 712, and/orvideo memory 715. The results of the execution at server 726 are thentransmitted through Internet 725, ISP 724, local network 722 andcommunication interface 720. In this example, computer 701 performs onlyinput and output functions.

Application code may be embodied in any form of computer programproduct. A computer program product comprises a medium configured tostore or transport computer readable code, or in which computer readablecode may be embedded. Some examples of computer program products areCD-ROM disks, ROM cards, floppy disks, magnetic tapes, computer harddrives, servers on a network, and carrier waves.

The computer systems described above are for example only. An embodimentof the invention may be implemented in any type of computer system orprogramming or processing environment.

Thus, a method and apparatus for processing routing requests aredescribed in conjunction with one or more specific embodiments. Theinvention is defined by the following claims and their full scope andequivalents.

1. A method for provision of routing address information comprising:receiving a communication request from a requester for routing to afirst address; determining if said first address is an active address;providing one or more service options to said requester when said firstaddress is not an active address.
 2. The method of claim 1 whereindetermining if said first address is an active address is accomplishedby comparing said address to a database.
 3. The method of claim 1wherein said one or more service options are selected from a pluralityof service options and are selected based on characteristics of saidaddress.
 4. The method of claim 3 wherein said characteristics comprisegeographic information of routing address, time of day, day of week,geographic information of requester, commercial information associatedwith said routing address, and characteristics of said plurality ofservice options.
 5. The method of claim 1 wherein said routing addresscomprises a phone number.
 6. The method of claim 1 wherein said routingaddress comprises a computer network address.
 7. The method of cliam 1wherein said routing address comprises an email address.
 8. The methodof claim 1 wherein said routing address comprises a telex address. 9.The method of claim 1 wherein said service option comprises routing saidrequest to a new routing address location of a prior assignee of saidrouting address.
 10. The method of claim 1 wherein said service optioncomprises providing advertising to said requester.
 11. The method ofclaim 1 wherein said service option comprises providing routing addressinformation to a location providing a similar service as a priorassignee of said routing address.
 12. The method of claim 1 wherein saidservice option comprises contacting said requester after a predeterminedtime.
 13. A communication method comprising: detecting a communicationrequest from a requester to a routing address initiating a follow upcommunication to said requester after a predetermined time.
 14. Themethod of claim 13 wherein said communication request is to a routingaddress that is not an active address.
 15. The method of claim 13wherein said follow up communication is a marketing communication. 16.The method of claim 15 wherein said marketing communication is selectedbased on characteristic information of said routing address and/or saidrequester.
 17. The method of claim 16 wherein said characteristicinformation comprises geographic information.
 18. The method of claim 16wherein said characteristic information comprises temporal information.19. The method of claim 16 wherein said characteristic informationcomprises commercial information associated with said routing address.20. A communication method comprising: monitoring a communicationrequest from a requester to a routing address; analyzing said routingaddress; providing service options to said requester that represent apredicted intent of said requester.